Looks Like A Child, But Is Much Older Than He Appears

There are many characters in Hunter x Hunter, and Gelman certainly can't remember all of them, but he can remember at least some of the ones with distinct personalities.

There's a difference between the 2D and 3D worlds, but after seeing the members of the Phantom Troupe, he realized the difference wasn't that significant; it was like comparing a sketch to a real person.

If he wasn't mistaken, the girl who had just pretended to be shyly looking at him should be the "Jewel Hunter" Biscuit.

Gelman didn't look back again. Instead, he continued eating his noodles. After finishing the noodles, he put down his chopsticks, took a sip of the soup, and then got up to pay the bill.

He walked towards the proprietress, naturally passing by the table of the blonde girl with twin ponytails.

His peripheral vision quickly swept over, comparing it with his memory. This time, Gelman was seventy to eighty percent sure it was Biscuit.

After paying, he walked out of the restaurant under the proprietress's resentful gaze and onto the bustling street outside.

"I should get some money first."

His original body was a well-known assassin, so his bank account wasn't short on funds.

Gelman withdrew a small amount of cash from the bank. When he came out, he saw Biscuit again.

Biscuit was rubbing her eyes with both hands, tears welling up, looking pitiful. She trembled exaggeratedly with each sob.

A crying girl could easily stir up a man's protective instincts. Several concerned glances were already cast her way.

Gelman glanced at the few people who had stopped to watch and remained silent.

If Gelman hadn't known beforehand that Biscuit was actually an old woman over fifty, he would have been fooled by her appearance.

Biscuit is a good person.

However, Gelman's current identity was not that of a good person. He couldn't figure out Biscuit's intentions, so he simply turned and walked away, ignoring her.

"It's better not to provoke her right now."

He had only walked a short distance when he heard Biscuit make a "tsk" sound. She took short steps and followed him.

"She's chasing me? Is she angry after being exposed? What does Biscuit want?"

"Isn't she a Jewel Hunter? Did she want to play bounty hunter just because she saw me?"

"Wait, Jewel Hunter... Jewel..."

Gelman thought of the "Promise Ruby" that his original body had stolen and given to Chrollo. He roughly understood why Biscuit was targeting him.

She loved jewels and had her eye on the "Promise Ruby."

Biscuit was a member of the Hunter Association. Under normal circumstances, she couldn't harm a gem merchant, nor could she snatch the pair of rubies she fancied.

However, now that the ruby was in Gelman's hands, the situation was different.

She had very flexible moral standards. Stealing a jewel from a thief and an assassin wouldn't count as "stealing."

As long as she could find a way to get the ruby from Gelman, it would be hers.

Gelman rubbed his chin.

"How can I subtly inform her that the ruby is no longer on me?"

"Most importantly, will she believe me?"

He walked forward, head bowed in thought. As he walked, he bumped into a thin man.

"Hmm?"

Even while distracted, Gelman would have avoided the thin man.

It was this thin man who had actively come closer, pretending to accidentally bump into him.

Then, Gelman noticed that the thin man's hands were not clean; he had actually stolen his wallet.

"Stealing money?"

He couldn't help but whistle. His right hand seemed to have a mind of its own, reaching out and then retracting in the blink of an eye.

The thin man was startled by Gelman's whistle. Then, realizing that Gelman didn't seem to have noticed his little move, he apologized for bumping into Gelman and quickly left.

Gelman turned into a dark alley. He reached into his pocket and took out not only his own wallet but also two other wallets stolen from the thin man.

He opened these two wallets, took out the cash, and counted it. It totaled over 6000 Jenny.

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Jenny and Japanese Yen have roughly equivalent purchasing power. The thin man's haul today was decent, but now it all belonged to Gelman.

He casually threw the two useless wallets on the ground and put the over 6000 Jenny back into his own wallet.

Biscuit, who had been observing silently for a while, turned into the alley at this moment. She was no longer pitiful but full of energy.

She pretended to be surprised and pointed at Gelman.

"Ah— Big brother, you stole someone else's wallet. That's not allowed, you know. It's a crime. I'm going to tell the police."

Gelman glanced at her and understood.

This was entrapment.

Biscuit was acting like one of those mischievous girls, deliberately pretending to be weak to lure Gelman into making a move, making him lower his guard, and then sounding the alarm...

Except the alarm she was calling wasn't for the police, but for herself.

Gelman had no choice but to explain the situation directly, to avoid wasting each other's time.

"The 'Promise Ruby' is not in my possession. I've already handed it over to an intermediary, and it should have been sold by now. Give up."

He spoke a half-truth, half-lie, which was quite believable, as it was a normal way to handle such things.

Upon hearing this, Biscuit realized Gelman had seen through her disguise as an ordinary young girl. She stopped pretending, showed a hint of disappointment, then put her hands on her hips and stared at Gelman with great interest.

"When did you realize my identity and my objective? No wonder neither of my two beautiful girl forms could make you let down your guard and release your 'Ten'… Hm, let me guess, was it at the restaurant?"

Gelman didn't want to continue talking with her and turned to leave again.

However, Biscuit, unwilling to give up, chased after him with her short legs, clutching her princess dress.

"I don't understand… Where did I slip up? I hid my aura very well, and I didn't say anything strange. Big brother with the hat, tell me."

Gelman certainly wouldn't say, "I knew from the start that you looked like a child but were far older than normal, because that would likely trigger an extremely terrifying dungeon."

It was highly unwise.

So, he changed his explanation.

"Simply put, a beautiful girl of twelve or thirteen, eating noodles alone in a restaurant with no guardian around, is suspicious enough. Not to mention, you openly followed me afterward."

Biscuit stopped in her tracks, stunned for a moment.

Then, she excitedly and joyfully chased after him again, her twin tails bouncing, a smile on her face.

"What? So that's how it is… I was a bit careless. My youthful beauty, without an adult nearby, is indeed strange. Beauty, you see…"

She suddenly reached out and grabbed Gelman's arm before he could react.

Gelman was slightly startled and struggled to break free, but couldn't.

Biscuit held his wrist with her left hand and placed her right hand on her hip, striking a graceful pose like a pop idol.

"Well, putting aside the fact that I'm beautiful, I have another question."

"Gelman, is your so-called intermediary the Phantom Troupe?"

Gelman looked at her pretty face, which was gradually showing a smug smile. It seemed she had come prepared.

He looked down at the petite Biscuit.

"Why do you know about my connection with the Phantom Troupe?"

Biscuit was sure Gelman had taken the bait. She lightly released his arm and began wagging a finger back and forth.

"Did you forget? After you stole the 'Promise Ruby,' you deliberately drew the Phantom Troupe's twelve-legged spider symbol on the most conspicuous wall by the entrance, and signed your special mark from the assassin world."

Gelman recalled that his original body had indeed done such a thing.

It was meant to be a token of allegiance to the Phantom Troupe, but the boomerang had ended up hitting the current Gelman.